Blog Archives
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NFC technology discussions continued
By Natalia Kosk - Saturday January 21, 2012
Phones enabled with wireless Near Field Communications (NFC) technology are already gaining speed in the marketplace as access control and other platforms utilize its advantages for mainstream deployment. Here’s what Raj Venkat, vice president of Marketing for Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies, Carmel, Ind., had to say on the topic. “Near-Field Communication, or NFC, provides simplified transactions, data exchange and wireless connections between two devices that are in close proximity to each other, usually by no more than a few centimeters. It is expected to become a widely-used system for making payments by smart phone in North America. Many smart phones on the market already contain embedded NFC chips that can send... -
What’s your New Year’s resolution?
By Natalia Kosk - Tuesday December 13, 2011As editors, we’re trained to do our research—dig through details, cold-call sources, fact-check the information we have come across through our searches— in finding “the story” as it relates to a particular topic or developing trend. And while there’s no other feeling like having the latest and greatest scoop on a hot topic (journalists, you know what I mean), sometimes it takes a few missteps and detours along the way to get to your achieved destination—or in this case, to get an exclusive. Where am I going with this, you ask? Let’s just say “said-detour” involved finding a new way to visualize developing residential changes and emerging home automation players—a topic which industry experts shared their thoughts... -
Gobble up the Black Friday savings but shop wisely
By Natalia Kosk - Wednesday November 23, 2011It’s that time of year again. No, I’m not talking about Thanksgiving when many of us gather with family and friends and share what we are thankful for—at least I like to think that’s one of the things we should be mindful of as we feast on the numerous dishes prepared. I’m talking about the infamous retail experience known as Black Friday, when scores of people venture out for the shopping marathon—some who even prepare for an all-night escapade to be the first in line to get those store bargains (yes, I’m talking about you shoppers who line the sidewalk outside of Best Buy at 2 a.m.). Why people would put themselves through countless hours of elbow-to-elbow shopping I will never understand. Yet this isn’t meant to be... -
RFI Communications & Security Systems discusses growth strategies
By Natalia Kosk - Monday November 21, 2011For many businesses, the period going into a New Year is the time to sit down, review developments of the past 12 months, plan their future budgets and create a roadmap of goals for the year ahead. Yet for San Jose, Calif.-based RFI Communications & Security Systems, a multi-systems integrator in the commercial, residential and enterprise markets, the strategic planning goes even further. “What we are looking for is to leverage what it is we do so well and make sure our customers recognize that value as they engage us as their trusted advisors,” said Dan Kilgore, managing director of Enterprise Sales for RFI. “The customers are changing and evolving with the sophistication they demand of us and themselves. And this is going to... -
Big Buys of 2011
By Natalia Kosk - Monday November 21, 2011If this past year told us anything, it’s that remote services and consumer-friendly features hit home for the security industry. While the initial buzz that 2010 brought with IP video seemed to wear off a bit, the year made up for it with developments in biometrics, PSIM, thermal imaging, remote services and apps. Here’s a glance back at some of the news that hit the streets this past year: • ADT’s commercial business acquires Proximex • ASSA ABLOY acquired identity credentials provider LaserCard • Avigilon goes public with IPO • Chemguard bought out and to be integrated into Tyco’s Fire Protection Products business unit • GVI Security—which lost its distribution agreement with Samsung Techwin America in... -
Schneider Electric Gives Editors the Energy 4-1-1
By Natalia Kosk - Wednesday November 2, 2011The message resounded clear at Schneider Electric’s North American Editor’s Event last month, held in Chicago: make the most of your energy and manage it efficiently. “Architects and engineers realize that if we are to get to net zero* some day, we can’t keep building structures the way we have been,” explained Melissa O’Mara, solution vice president, Green Buildings, Schneider Electric. “And the construction industry is realizing this.” Building Information Modeling (BIM) is one way that architects, engineers, consultants and contractors can design, construct and operate more efficient buildings. “It’s not just the As-built drawings,” that people are reliant on, added O’Mara. “Live BIM drawings are... -
Sielox and Excel announce managed services company
By Natalia Kosk - Tuesday September 20, 2011Sielox, Runnemede, N.J., a provider of integrated access control, video surveillance, perimeter security and event management systems, and security solutions provider Excel Security, New York, N.Y., announced the formation of their managed services company—Sielox24Seven—today on the ASIS tradeshow floor. Designed to provide value-added services beyond traditional access control and video surveillance solutions, Sielox24Seven allows its partners to market its services to end users without having to provide upfront cost and management for the groundwork of providing a remote managed access control system for a site. “There are many small- to mid-range companies that don’t have the time or staff or resources to manage an access... -
Recruiting all CheckVideo dealers
By Natalia Kosk - Thursday September 1, 2011Proactive video monitoring platforms are hot and most recently, video analytics provider Cernium Corp. Reston, Va. added a new dealer initiative to the mix for its CheckVideo offering. The new initiative, designed to enable dealers to offer the solution to their existing customer base, will help the “dealers that focus on the small- to medium-scale businesses that have assets to protect that they were not able to in the past,” confirmed Phil Robertson, vice president, Security and Alarm Division, Cernium. “It’s a clear ROI and has an added value for the dealer to be able to offer their customers.” And while the dealer initiative is aimed more towards the commercial business side of the alarm industry, Robertson... -
Confidence rises in video analytics
By Natalia Kosk - Thursday April 14, 2011At the ISC West tradeshow last month, Mark Gally, vice president of Marketing, VideoIQ, Bedford, Mass., shared his thoughts with Security Dealer & Integrator , confirming that “the market is getting its confidence back in video analytics as of the last nine to 12 months.” He explained that this comes from people being able to use video analytics for more business applications. “One of the main problems with video analytics was that integrators would do five or six analytic installs in one year but would not do enough of the manual calibrations—they weren’t doing this enough to do it accurately,” continued Gally. “Now, analytics are going beyond just the rule and alarm notification capabilities. You need to make sure you... -
Developing technologies for central stations
By Natalia Kosk - Saturday April 9, 2011Las Vegas, Nev. (April 8, 2011) -- Following its fifth annual ISC West morning breakfast, held at the Las Vegas Wynn Hotel, Secure Global Solutions (SGS) of Irvine Calif., signed an agreement with Devcon Security Services in Boca Raton, Fla., regarding the implementation of SGS central station systems. Although SGS did not disclose any specific details regarding the contract, SGS Vice President Hank Goldberg did confirm that the partnership stems from Devcon's ability to understand market opportunities available today, and said the new partnership will be finalized within the next 90 days... [Read Natalia's full article: Developing Technologies for Central Stations -- where she examines the agreement, the SGS technology and...
